NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 95: Journey To Yichang (2)
Our budget was precariously tight.
I stepped out of the room with Tang Hwarin, ordered some food, and as I fiddled with the lighter wallet, I was lost in thought.
‘I do have some spare money.’
I had another emergency fund pouch that I had never shown to Tang Hwarin.
Ever since I started saving money, I lived by the 3.3.3 rule, just like on Earth.
Living expenses 3, Savings 3, Gacha 3. A rule that every adult must know.
‘I can’t use the emergency fund to spin the novel gacha.’
You never know what might happen while I was writing a book. It would be wise to finish the trip with the money from the living expenses pouch.
That meant I needed to earn money.
After all, generosity came from a full barn. You needed money even to donate. In such a village, I wondered if I should look for storyteller work elsewhere.
‘She doesn’t even know about my troubled heart and just keeps glaring at me.’
I mean you. You. Tang Hwarin.
“……”
Tang Hwarin, after coming out of the room, has been silently glaring at me the whole time.
It’s awkward.
If I could add a comic touch behind Tang Hwarin, I’d put in a picture with cold blizzards swirling around.
What should I say?
It’s a misunderstanding. My brain vehemently resisted, but due to the command from my lower half, there was a malfunction in my body’s operation. Honestly, the grandeur of it all was engulfing my entire field of vision; how could I resist?
No.
It’s not my fault. A famous Korean psychoanalyst, Professor F, said that humans were animals of reason but also of libido.
Enough. All these were just pathetic excuses.
Let’s just pretend I don’t know anything.
If I was smiling, she wouldn’t spit at me.
Tang Hwarin didn’t know why she’s been silently staring at Kang Yun-ho since morning.
“Haah.”
Tang Hwarin, after looking at my smiling face for a while, let out a deep sigh.
“Why are you sighing from the morning?”
“Do I look like I’m not supposed to sigh?”
Tang Hwarin glared at me as if sparks were flying. Wasn’t that a bit much? Did I touch a nerve? Did I lean in too close?
In the morning, it looked elastic yet soft and grand. Just looking at that solo alcohol pouch seemed like it would send one to paradise. Instead, my patience should be commended.
But making excuses was for the weak. I must continue pretending I don’t know.
I continued to smile and look at Tang Hwarin.
Why did she look so haggard this morning? What’s with the dark circles under her eyes?
Alright. Let’s change the subject with this.
“Did you have trouble sleeping?”
I asked her with a genuinely concerned face.
“……What?”
“Was the bed uncomfortable? I slept well.”
If one was not used to the bed, it’s possible to have a restless sleep. Could Tang Hwarin be experiencing the same?
“It’s not because of the bed that I couldn’t sleep……”
“Then what?”
“……Never mind. Haah. If I’m the only one thinking this, then I must be crazy.”
Tang Hwarin sighed as if she was disappointed in herself.
What was she thinking?
Seeing my puzzled expression, as if I couldn’t guess her thoughts, she seemed to convince herself of something and then relaxed her tense expression.
“The meal is ready!”
I forgot to bring water because of the atmosphere.
“Wait, I’ll go get some water.”
I told Tang Hwarin and pushed my chair back.
“Stay seated. I’ll get it this time.”
Tang Hwarin got up faster than me and brought back a water bottle.
“Wow. Add one point to the trust score.”
It’s commendable that she learned by watching just once. I showed her one of my fingers, indicating a point.
“Nonsense. What are you talking about?”
Tang Hwarin was incredulous at my gesture but soon chuckled.
See? It’s more comfortable when you laugh.
Now I could finally eat in peace.
“Are we leaving right away?”
After finishing the meal, Tang Hwarin spoke to me.
“I’m considering doing a day of storytelling work here.”
It was better to prepare when you felt your finances were lacking, rather than waiting until you were completely out of money.
“If you’re hesitating because of me, it’s okay to go ahead.”
“No, it’s not because of that. This village is just too backward.”
“Why does that matter?”
“Even if you use storytelling, there’s a high chance you won’t make much money in an aged and backward village.”
Of course, if you’re exceptionally good at storytelling, you could make money.
The problem was, if the listeners were stingy or too poor to afford much, earning significant money was unlikely.
‘If Tang Hwarin helps, it could work.’
In truth, I knew a way to solve this issue. There’s always a way to make money, no matter how impoverished the village. But I couldn’t ask Tang Hwarin for help.
‘To maintain an equal relationship, we need to keep a reciprocal dynamic.’
I was the water carrier. Tang Hwarin was the guard. We were companions traveling to our destination together. Extending my hand first to ask for help with money would ruin the relationship.
There’s no need to ruin the hard-earned relationship over a few pennies.
“Hey, Kang Yun-ho.”
“Why?”
Tang Hwarin called me with gusto and then fidgeted with her fingers as if she was embarrassed.
“Um… Is there anything I can help with?”
Tang Hwarin said this and, feeling shy, couldn’t meet my gaze, instead looking at her fidgeting hands.
Huh? Tang Hwarin was offering to help on her own?
This changed things.
“Really? You’ll help?”
I grabbed her hand with both of mine, not wanting to miss her offer.
“Hey, why are you grabbing my hand!”
“Will you help?”
“Ah… Yes, I said I’ll help!”
Tang Hwarin, with a flushed face, alternately looked at her hand and my face, then nodded.
“Then, Tang Hwarin, let’s do a job together.”
If we could use the method I was thinking of, making money in this village would be a piece of cake.
Late afternoon. On the way to the village square.
“Are you really going to do it?”
Tang Hwarin asked me again with an anxious voice.
“Just trust me.”
“I’m anxious.”
Tang Hwarin looked at me with dubious eyes.
“I’ve been a storyteller for a few years now, don’t worry.”
“A few years?”
“Um… It hasn’t been a year yet, probably?”
I replied to Tang Hwarin with a smile.
“Haaaaah. Can I really trust this?”
Tang Hwarin sighed deeply and followed me with hesitant steps.
“Cheer up! After today’s work, I’ll add 10 points to your trust score!”
I threw out a silly joke to boost her confidence.
“Ha. What are you saying? Really… But how many points is perfect?”
I hadn’t thought that far.
The scores were given out like a recreation instructor at a training camp, pretty casually.
As we walked to the village square with my light-hearted joke, we soon arrived.
“The storyteller has arrived!”
“Grandpa! A storyteller has come to our village!”
“Hehe. Yes, child. I see him. It’s been a while since we had a storyteller.”
“Old man, move over so I can sit down.”
“I need to sit comfortably because my joints hurt.”
“Who doesn’t have aches!”
Entering the village square, there were many people gathered.
“It was a good idea to give the innkeeper some money.”
“Indeed.”
Tang Hwarin, looking at the gathered crowd, appeared stunned and then agreed with my statement.
After breakfast, I gave some money to the sociable innkeeper to spread the word that a storyteller had arrived. I promised more if he gathered a large crowd, and quite a lot of people showed up.
I stepped onto the stage prepared for the rare entertainers that visit the village.
“Hello! I am Kang Mo, a storyteller from Joseon!”
Snap! I unfolded what I consider my trademark fan, once again capturing the audience’s attention without fail.
“Hehe. A barbarian storyteller, huh? It’ll be interesting to hear exotic stories.”
I slowly surveyed the audience.
Elderly and children, men who looked like poor farmers, and village women. There were a few affluent-looking people, but most appeared impoverished.
Earning a lot from such an audience would normally be unlikely. Normally, that was.
‘The start of the plan begins with the subject.’
“Today’s story is about ‘Prince Hamurin’s Revenge for His Grandfather’!”
I was just passing through a village for a day. There’s no need to craft a new story tailored to specific tastes. Instead, I mixed in a suitable variation with a story that guaranteed both entertainment and income.
Given the large proportion of elderly in the audience, I changed the revenge from father to grandfather for the story.
“Could it be my father he killed? Such unfilial behavior!”
“It’s obvious that uncle is a worthless scoundrel!”
“That uncle! Messing with women and even laying hands on someone else’s, then running off to another village!”
“The firstborn should continue the ancestral rites, but that scoundrel took all the property!”
When I mentioned that the uncle killed Hamurin’s grandfather and monopolized the property, the elderly’s reaction immediately intensified.
Indeed, it’s a setting that’s easy to get immersed in: a wayward second son, a diligent grandson, a situation where the expectation that the firstborn grandson would continue the rites, despite the disappointing child, was betrayed.
It’s bound to cause anger.
‘Now, let’s move to the second stage.’
“The property of the Ha family is the dirty money of those filthy people. I cannot use such dirty money to avenge my grandfather. Oh heavens!! Please!! Grant me travel expenses!!”
It’s storytelling time. I started moving among the audience with a money bucket.
“…….”
“It’s cold. Everyone’s gaze is avoiding me.”
I knew this would happen.
In such a destitute place, people weren’t eager to part with their money from the start.
“Heavens!! Without travel expenses, I cannot go to the scene of my grandfather’s murder!!”
I was not one to give up just like that.
Did you want to stop listening to the story? No matter how much you didn’t want to give money, if the bucket wasn’t filled, I couldn’t continue. Dear audience.
“Hehe! People lack compassion! Here, take this! Quickly carry out your revenge!”
“I don’t have much money, but here’s a little!”
“Quickly avenge your grandfather!”
“Is this enough for at least a snack?”
An elderly man threw some money as a representative, and then others started throwing coins too. However, the amount was significantly less than what I had collected in Chilgok County.
‘I expected as much.’
I had anticipated that this village wouldn’t bring in much profit through storytelling. There’s no need to be disappointed.
This was all part of the plan.
‘Let’s move on to the third part.’
I went up on the stage again to continue my performance.
“I’ve found the evidence. But the travel expenses are far too insufficient!!! I can’t even afford to sleep in a proper inn, and I can’t remember the last time I had a full meal.”
I shook the bucket with not much money in it, indicating to the audience that the character’s predicament was due to their stinginess.
“So, give me some money!”
“Did you forget what happened last time when a storyteller didn’t get paid and just left for another village?”
“Is he going to end the story saying he collapsed and died because of this?”
It seemed this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened in the village. I could sense unease among the murmuring crowd.
Don’t worry. I was not the type to give up and leave just because I didn’t make money.
“I’m so tired from the long journey. Too tired! My body feels like a thousand pounds, my spirit, ten thousand.”
I slumped my shoulders weakly and paced the stage, then raised one fist high as if signaling to someone waiting.
“It’s dangerous!”
From somewhere, along with a warning from a woman with a Central Plains poison pouch, a hidden weapon wrapped in a red string flew towards me and hit my body.
“Ugh!”
I bent over, pretending to be severely wounded by the weapon.
“What? Where did that come from?”
“Who threw a hidden weapon at Hamurin?”
“Come out! What is this madness!”
The crowd was startled, on the verge of rising from their seats.
No, don’t get up.
“No! It must be an assassin sent by the uncle!”
Don’t worry. It’s just an act. I lifted the hidden weapon with the red string to reassure the people.
Where’s Tang Hwarin?
She said this training hidden weapon wouldn’t hurt. It hurts quite a bit, though.
Never trust those who claimed that reverse-bladed swords were harmless.
“It’s all staged.”
The people relaxed and settled back into their seats.
‘The stage is set, now let’s begin.’
“Fortunately, the vital points were missed!!! But to be this exhausted!!! And then an assassin appears!!! What if the assassin throws another weapon? What to do!!!”
“Should he sleep?”
“Hey, you. What if an assassin comes and kills you?”
“If you’re tired, you should sleep. What other choice do you have?”
“Heh. To stay awake when you’re this tired. There’s no solution.”
The people began to sigh deeply at this difficult situation.
But there was a way, elders.
A way to relieve Hamurin’s fatigue.
A way to solve my financial predicament.
People didn’t want to part with their money in this backward village?
The old masters had devised methods for such situations.
Did you often feel tired?
“Knowing this might happen!!! From the faraway Sichuan Tang Family!!! I’ve brought!!! A fatigue recovery potion!!!”
Ta-da! A medicine peddler has come from Joseon for your health.